Avian chlamydiosis: Two more bacterial players discovered

The recent description of two new bacterial species of the family Chlamydiaceae sheds new light on an old disease. Avian chlamydiosis, also called psittacosis, ornithosis or parrot fever, has been known for centuries and is a major factor of economic loss to the poultry industry as well as a permanent risk for zoonotic transmission to man ( Harkinezhad et al., 2009). Depending on the infecting strain and the avian host involved, the clinical manifestations include pneumonia, air sacculitis, pericarditis, hepatitis and/or splenitis, occasionally with fatal outcome. In addition, latent infection has a potential of causing recurrent clinical disease ending in chronicity. Moreover, intermittent shedding of carriers represents an important reservoir of infection for birds and humans. ...